HomeMy WebLinkAbout0207 CONDUCTING CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS CITY OF BAKERSFIELD
COUNCIL POLICY STATEMENT
CP No. 2.7
SUBJECT: CONDUCTING CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
SECTION: CHAPTER TWO
POLICY: ADOPTION OF POLICY FOR CONDUCTING CITY COUNCIL
MEETINGS
STATEMENT: Establishes a policy regarding the conduct of City Council
meetings.
ADOPTION:
Agenda Item NO./Date 8.c.; November 17. 2021
Approved by City Council Res. No. 206-2021
Amended by City Council
SACOUNCIL\Policies\Policy Statements\2.7.doc
206 - 2021
RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL FOR THE CITY OF
BAKERSFIELD ESTABLISHING A COUNCIL POLICY FOR
CONDUCTING CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS.
WHEREAS, rules and regulations governing the conduct of City Council
meetings were previously set forth in Chapter 2.04 of the Bakersfield Municipal
Code; and
WHEREAS, the Council finds that establishing a Council policy regarding the
conduct of City Council meetings provides greater flexibility to ensure meetings
are efficient and in compliance with the law.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Bakersfield
as follows:
1) The above recitals are true and correct and incorporated herein by
reference.
2) The City Council hereby adopts the Policy for Conducting City Council
Meetings as set forth in Exhibit A, attached hereto and incorporated
herein.
3) This Resolution shall become effective December 31, 2021.
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I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Resolution was passed and adopted
by the Council of the City of Bakersfield at a regular meeting thereof held on
NOV 17 2021 by the following vote:
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COUNCILMEMBER,AR S,GaANZALES ,SMITH,Ff ";.., d,GRAY,PAF�LIER
COUNCILMEMBER
N: COUNCILMEMBER
ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBER
44
JJLIE DRIMAKIS, MMC
CITY CLERK and Ex Officio Clerk of
the Council of the City of Bakersfield
APPROVED NV 12 201
By -M%,Of
KREN G H
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ASHBy
LEY a BRA
Deputy y Attorney
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Attachment: Exhibit A
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EXHIBIT A
POLICY FOR CONDUCTING CITY COUNCIL MEETINGS
SECTION 1. RULES OF ORDER
Except as otherwise provided in this policy, the city charter, or other Council
policy, the City Council shall generally follow Robert's Rules of Order, current
edition.
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SECTION 2. DUTIES OF PRESIDING OFFICER.
The duties of the presiding officer shall be:
A. To call the meeting to order;
B. To recognize the members entitled to the floor;
C. To preserve and enforce order and decorum;
D. To consider and decide, in the presiding officer's sole discretion, requests
for extensions of time during public statements and public hearings;
E. To reorder items of business on the agenda to promote meeting efficiency,
if determined appropriate in the presiding officer's sole discretion; t
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F. To decide all points of order, unless when in doubt the presiding officer
prefers to submit the question to the decision of the body;
G. Generally to guide and direct the proceedings of the body, subject to the
control and will of the body; i
H. To carry out any other duties as specified in the city charter.
SECTION 3. SERGEANT AT ARMS.
A. There shall be a sergeant at arms, who shall be the Chief of Police or
designee.
B. The sergeant at arms shall attend all regular sessions, and shall, under the
direction of the presiding officer, maintain order on the floor of the Council
chambers.
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SECTION 4. ORDER OF BUSINESS.
A. Except as may otherwise be set by resolution of the City Council, regular
meetings of the Council shall generally be noticed for 3:30 p.m. and 5:15
p.m. on the first and third Wednesdays of each month. The primary reason
for the 3:30 p.m. meetings is to handle closed session matters, but the city
manager has discretion to place other matters on said agenda,
B. At the time set for regular meetings of the City Council, the business of the
Council shall be taken up for consideration and generally discussed in the
following order:
1. Roll Call;
2. Invocation;
3. Pledge of Allegiance;
4. Presentations;
5. Public Statements:
a. Agenda Item Public Statements;
b. Non-Agenda Item Public Statements;
6. Appointments;
7. Consent Calendar;
8. Consent Calendar Public Hearings;
9. Public Hearings,
10. Reports;
11. Deferred Business;
12. New Business;
13. Council and Mayor Statements;
14. Closed Session (if continued from 3-30 p.m.),-
15. Adjournment.
C. The order of business set forth above may be changed by the city manager
prior to the posting of the agenda to allow for a smooth and orderly flow of
business during the meeting.
SECTION 5. CONSENT CALENDAR.
A. The consent calendar is comprised of one or more items of routine nature
which may be approved at one time by affirmative roll call vote.
B. Only a Councilmember may remove an item(s) from the consent calendar
which shall be voted upon separately from all other items on said consent
calendar.
C. Any Councilmember may declare a conflict of interest, indicate the cause
of the conflict and request the city clerk to record their abstention from the
vote on any item or items on the consent calendar. That Councilmember's
vote on the consent calendar shall be recorded only for those items for
which that Councilmember did not declare a conflict and the city clerk
shall record the abstention of the remaining issues.
D. The minutes of the previous Council meeting, which shall be action-style
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minutes, may be approved as part of the consent calendar.
SECTION b. CONSENT CALENDAR PUBLIC HEARINGS.
A. Consent calendar public hearings are those matters which shall be set for
public hearing but are considered routine and non-controversial. Consent
calendar public hearings may be simultaneously opened and closed by
the presiding officer and approved at one time by affirmative roll call vote.
B. Prior to opening the hearing, the presiding officer shall inquire as to
whether any member of the public or Council wishes to remove a matter
from the consent calendar public hearings. Any such item so removed
shall be placed at the end of the Public Hearings portion of the meeting.
SECTION 7. PUBLIC STATEMENTS.
A. Any person may address the Council on any item of interest to the public
that is within the subject matter jurisdiction of the City Council as follows:
1 . Agenda Items. All persons desiring to address the Council on an item
listed on the agenda shall speak during the Agenda Item Public
Statements portion of the meeting. Speakers shall be limited to two
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minutes per person, twenty minutes per agenda item. Note: The
Consent Calendar as a whole constitutes one agenda item.
2. Non-Agenda Items. All persons desiring to address the Council on a
general item of interest within the subject matter jurisdiction of the
Council that is not listed on the agenda shall speak during the Non
Agenda Item Public Statements portion of the meeting. Speakers
shall be limited to two minutes per person, twenty minutes total.
Speakers who do not identify the topic on which they wish to speak
will be presumed speakers for Non-Agenda Item Public Statements
and called during that portion of the meeting. }
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3. Public Hearings. All persons wishing to address the Council regarding
a matter set for public hearing at that meeting shall make their
comments during the open public hearing on that matter, pursuant
to the public hearing procedures set forth in Section 8.
B. All persons wishing to address the Council during a meeting will be asked
to fill out and return to the city clerk a speaker's card provided by the city
clerk. The purpose of the speaker's cards is to facilitate orderly and
relevant public statements during the appropriate portions of the meeting;
however, filling out a speaker's card is voluntary and shall not be a
prerequisite to providing a public statement. The speaker's cards shall
provide a place for speakers to identify which item on the agenda they
wish to speak, or alternatively,whether they wish to provide a Non-Agenda l
Item Public Statement. i
C. No person shall address the Council until recognized by the mayor or
presiding officer. Councilmembers who wish to allow a member of the
audience to speak at times other than the time designated for the public
statement, or after a public hearing has been closed, may do so only with
the permission of the presiding officer.
D. Unless otherwise determined by the Council, the presiding officer shall
determine whether a speaker's statement is a matter within the subject
matter jurisdiction of the City Council
SECTION 8. HEARINGS.
A. Hearings. Scheduled public hearings are to be conducted in the following
order:
1. Presentation by staff and recommendation;
2. Public hearing is opened by the presiding officer;
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3. Presentation by opponents, limited to fifteen minutes total for all
speakers; provided, however, additional time may be granted by the
presiding officer;
4. Presentation by proponents, with the time limits specified in
subsection (A)(3), and such equivalent additional time as may have
been granted to opponents;
5. Where a hearing is the result of an appeal, the order of presentation
shall be reversed and the appellant shall proceed first;the time limits
provisions of subsection (A)(3) shall apply;
6. Summation by both sides limited to five minutes each; provided,
however, both sides may be granted additional time by the presiding
officer;
7. Public hearing is closed by the presiding officer;
8. Council discussion and Council decision.
B. Spokesperson for Group of Persons. In order to expedite matters and avoid
repetitious presentations, whether any group of persons wishes to address
the Council on the some subject matter, it shall be proper for the presiding
officer to request that a spokesperson be chosen by the group to address
the Council, and in the event additional matters are to be presented at the
time by any other member having like views as the group, to limit the
number of such persons addressing the Council and limit the time for each
person.
SECTION 9. RULES OF DEBATE.
A. Presiding Officer May Debate and Vote. In the absence of the mayor, the
vice-mayor or such other member of the Council as may be presiding may
move, second and debate from the chair, subject only to such limitations
of debate as are by these rules imposed on all members and shall not be
deprived of any of the rights and privileges as a Councilmember by reason
of their acting as the presiding officer.
B. Getting the Floor—improper References to be Avoided. Every member
desiring to speak shall address the chair, and upon recognition by the
presiding officer, shall discuss only the question under debate, avoiding all
personalities and indecorous language.
C. Interruptions. A member, once recognized, shall not be interrupted when
speaking unless called to order, or as otherwise provided in this section. If a
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member, while speaking, is called to order, said member shall cease
speaking until the question of order is determined, and, if in order, shall be
permitted to proceed.
D. Remarks of Mayor. The mayor may express views on any subject for
consideration by the Council and may file any written recommendations
with the clerk.
SECTION 10. COUNCILMEMBER DISSENT AGAINST COUNCIL ACTION.
Any Councilmember may state the reason for dissent from or protest against any
action of the Council.
SECTION 11. ORDINANCES, RESOLUTIONS, MOTIONS AND CONTRACTS.
A. Preparation of Ordinances. All ordinances shall be reviewed by the city
attorney. No ordinance shall be prepared for presentation to the Council
unless ordered by a majority vote of the Council, or referred by a Council
committee, or prepared or recommended by the city attorney on her or
his own initiative (e.g., "ordinance clean-ups" to reflect current practice or
correct typographical and grammatical errors, or to comply with new rules
and regulations).
B. Prior Approval by Administrative Staff. All ordinances, resolutions and
contract documents shall, before presentation to the Council, have been
approved as to form and legality by the city attorney or authorized
representative, and shall have been examined and approved for the
administration by the city manager or authorized representative, where
there are substantive matters of administration involved.
SECTION 12. ADJOURNMENT.
A motion to adjourn shall always be in order and decided without debate.
SECTION 13. COMPLIANCE.
Failure to strictly adhere to this policy shall not be grounds for setting aside any
action or vote of the City Council.
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